Case Study: Forensic Analysis of the Vancouver Hockey Riot Videos

The citizens of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada are unlikely to recall anything very positive regarding the night of June 15, 2011. That was when the Vancouver Canucks lost the Stanley Cup Finals to the Boston Bruins—prompting an estimated 150,000 people to riot in downtown Vancouver. In just a few hours, the offenders managed to amass nearly $4 million in damage.

A handful of arrests were made that night and more were made during the next several days, but few officials were optimistic that many more rioters would be held accountable for their actions. Another riot in Vancouver (also following the Stanley Cup) in 1994 ultimately resulted in convictions of only 110 people—in spite of an investment of four months worth of investigation and analysis. Some speculated that the 2011 incident would repeat history.